


Periphery

by skysedge



Category: Bloodborne (Video Game)
Genre: Drabble, F/F, Gen, Introspection, Light Angst, Unresolved Emotional Tension, Перевод на русский | Translation in Russian
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-13 04:00:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29022363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skysedge/pseuds/skysedge
Summary: They have been talking close to an hour when Maria stands to leave and Adeline reaches up to boldly tug at her sleeve.Translation in Russian by tskardthere!
Relationships: Adeline/Maria (Bloodborne)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 16
Collections: femslashficlets: tarot prompt challenge





	Periphery

They have been talking close to an hour when Maria stands to leave and Adeline reaches up to boldly tug at her sleeve.

She doesn’t mean to be selfish. She knows she should desire nothing but her ascension, should be blind and deaf to any other wants. Some days it’s easier than others and today it’s very difficult indeed. She’s tired and sore, her head aches terribly, and the blood ministrations of late have hurt so very much. She had been laying on her bed and praying for sleep to take her when Maria had arrived. It’s strange but her headache seems to have eased a little just through passing the time of day, through small talk and shared smiles.

Maria is a natural healer. If Adeline can grow to bring even a fragment of such joy to others then her life will have been worth living.

“Adeline? Is something the matter?”

She has been silent too long. Maria reaches for her hand and gently removes it from her sleeve but doesn’t let go.

"Stay a little while,” Adeline says softly, giving Maria’s hand a squeeze with her weak fingers.   
  
"I can't."

Maria steps away and her hand slips through Adeline’s fingers. It hurts even though it shouldn’t. Adeline should want for nothing but she can’t deny that the time they spend together makes her heart sing. Maria is busy, she has so many others to attend to and Adeline has already taken so much of her time, but she yearns for a little more, just a few minutes longer. She can feel herself frowning as Maria opens the door and turns with her hand still on the handle.   
  
"Oh come now, Adeline,” she says, offering a smile. “You're far too pretty to frown so."

It’s a sweet thing to say, especially when Adeline knows she looks as sick and frail as she feels, and so she returns the smile with an apologetic one of her own. Still, she wishes she knew a way to make Maria stay. Adeline isn’t the only one suffering. Maria might be strong in body but Adeline can see the darkness in her eyes sometimes, the haunted glances she casts the shadows in the room, the way she always keeps herself a little distant, a little closed off.    
  
"I know you’re busy,” she says before continuing bravely. “But whatever it is you're trying to atone for, surely it can't be so terrible that you can't have just a little rest?"

In an instant, Maria’s face pales. It’s as if a different woman is standing before her, one afraid for not just her life but her soul too. Adeline’s chest aches to see it. Whatever it is that troubles Maria, she wants to know, to share the burden, to ease the pain. For a moment their eyes meet and she thinks she’s going to be trusted with such forbidden knowledge. But then Maria steadies herself, her eyes grow a little colder, and when she smiles it’s with her lips only.   
  
"I'm sorry, Adeline,” she murmurs. “I'm afraid it is."   
  
And then she’s gone and Adeline is alone once more. Her head begins to ache immediately and she sits still as a wave of dizziness crashes over her. She can hear Maria’s footsteps receding down the hall but the sound echoes slightly as if she was underwater and...

Ahh, that’s it. That’s the sound she wants to hear. It’s time to forget her selfish, worldly wants and focus on that instead. Still, as she straightens her posture and readies herself, she can’t help but worry about Maria.

It isn’t fair, she thinks. This is a place for growth. The patients aren’t the only ones that should blossom.

**Author's Note:**

> For femslashficlets Tarot Prompt Table Challenge, _The High Priestess_ \- Secrets and hidden circumstances  
> stand in the way and need to be understood.


End file.
